COLUMN: A fifth Slam? Unlikely, but why not Indian Wells?

The crowd in Stadium 1 for Sunday's BNP Paribas Open men's singles final between Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer. (Freelance photo: Rodrigo Pena)

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INDIAN WELLS â A fifth Slam?

Or maybe part of a fourth, even?

Rest assured, the annual tennis extravaganza in the desert has further enhanced its reputation as the best tournament that isnât a Grand Slam over the past two weeks. The turnstile count for the 14 days of the BNP Paribas Open, which ended Sunday, came to 431,527, including 27,623 for three free admission days (a Saturday exhibition and two days of qualifying).

The customers raved about the new Stadium 2, enjoyed the other enhancements to the grounds, and sold out the 16,000-seat Stadium 1 on the final weekend.

The entire picture is one of continued growth and prosperity, in a sport that is sometimes stagnant and in a region that otherwise has abandoned tennis as a spectator event. Three mid-summer tournaments â the womenâs events at Carlsbad and Carson and the menâs tourney at UCLA â have disappeared, victims of timing, player availability and sponsor and spectator ennui.

Indian Wells, with its magnificent facility, its isolation geographically and its ideal spot on the schedule, has become the focal point of Southern California tennis as well as a global destination in early March.

So, with the determination of tournament director Steve Simon, CEO Raymond Moore and owner/chairman Larry Ellison to continue to take this thing to higher and higher levels, does it make sense to ultimately consider Indian Wells as a Grand Slam tournament site?

There has been mumbling about establishing a fifth Slam somewhere in Asia. And there was an entirely serious suggestion from Sports Illustrated scribe Jon Wertheim that the U.S. Open, an August-September fixture in New York, should consider relocating to the Coachella Valley once every five years or so.

Given average temperatures in the desert around Labor Day, theyâd have to move the Open back at least a month. But it never hurts to dream.

The dream, however, may remain just that. It certainly will not be pushed by the proprietors of the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, at least not for public consumption.

âThatâs not our station in life in the tennis world,â said Moore, the one-time touring pro from South Africa who along with Charlie Pasarell kept this tournament going and growing until Ellison, the oracle of Oracle, bought it and started pumping serious money into it.

âYou know, there is always talk of a fifth Grand Slam. Having been in tennis all my life, I find it very difficult to envision that there will ever be a fifth Slam. All of the Slams are over 100 years of history. Then, youâre going to start talking about, âWell, if Rod Laver had played, would he have won the fifth?â It just introduces other elements that are not there.

âI think we are very comfortable simply being included in the conversation. We donât have aspirations to be the fifth Slam. Politically, I think, for the (International Tennis Federation) to grant a fifth Slam to anywhere is next to impossible.â

So what about becoming the U.S. Open West once every five years?

Not possible, Moore said, âunless they want to move the U.S. Open to March.â

Such talk, however, means that theyâre doing a lot of things right out here.

âItâs obviously very flattering and humbling to even be in the conversation,â said Simon, who has been connected with this tournament for two decades. âBut, you know, our goal has always been to become as big as we can possibly be.

âIf that means equal in some ways to Slams, thatâs terrific. But that designation as a Slam is something thatâs beyond any of our control. There are four Slams. They deserve their place in history.â

Menâs singles champion Novak Djokovic, who is fairly open-minded when it comes to ways to advance the sport, was asked if he thought Indian Wells could become a fifth Slam?

âAh, well, you know, there are a few tournaments around the world that they call the Fifth Slam, but itâs difficult to say, really,â he said. âOne thing is for sure: this tournament is, if not the best, one of the best tournaments in the world in terms of investing in facilities and making players feel comfortable and, really, sharing the passion for the sport with fans.

âIndian Wells is one of the ATP events that shows that, you know, ATP events deserve to be in the same league (as the Grand Slams). Why not?â

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